The judge in former President Donald Trump's Georgia election interference case on Monday confirmed a Thursday hearing on whether the Fulton County district attorney and a prosecutor must testify about allegations of misconduct against the two of them.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee’s decision to move forward with an evidentiary hearing on Thursday is a blow to Willis, who had asked the judge to cancel the hearing and reject motions from Trump and other co-defendants who are seeking to disqualify her over her claims she had an improper relationship with special prosecutor Nathan Wade, The Washington Post reported.
A Feb. 2 court filing disclosed that Willis is involved in a "personal relationship" with Wade, whom Willis hired for the case against Trump.
On Friday, the lawyer for Mike Roman, a longtime GOP operative who worked on Trump's 2020 campaign, said Wade's former law partner will "refute" claims Willis and Wade made that their relationship started after the prosecutor was appointed to lead the case against the former president.
The filing pressed Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee to move ahead with Thursday's evidentiary hearing on Roman's motion to disqualify Willis, Wade, and the district attorney's office.
ABC News reported that Willis' office has asked McAfee to quash the subpoenas to her, Wade, the DA's office employees, and Wade's business associate, calling the effort "harassment and disruption."
The DA also has asked the judge to cancel the upcoming evidentiary hearing altogether.
Willis maintains there is "no factual basis" that "could reasonably justify requiring" her and a number of her employees to become witnesses in the case, and accused Roman of "an attempt to conduct discovery in a [rather belated] effort to support reckless accusations," ABC News reported.
"Harassment and disruption of this type should not be entertained," the filing says.
Wade filed a motion seeking to quash a subpoena for his bank records.
A former DA's office employee also is seeking to revoke a subpoena issued to her.
David Shafer, the former Georgia GOP chair, last week became the fourth defendant to call for Willis to be disqualified from the prosecution team in the case against Trump.
Shafer's attorneys argue that Willis' personal relationship with Wade should disqualify her.
Roman's lawyer last month accused Willis' office of failing to comply with the Georgia Open Records Act, saying they "appear to be intentionally withholding information" that had been requested.
"Mr. Roman believes that Willis' use of money budgeted to [the DA's office] is of utmost importance in evaluating whether Willis and Wade have an irreparable and fatal conflict of interest and whether, and to what extent, Willis has otherwise used public monies for personal gain," said the lawsuit, filed in Fulton State Court, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
The Daily Caller reported Friday that Willis failed to accept a subpoena issued by the House Judiciary Committee via email earlier this month, forcing U.S. Marshals to hand deliver it to her personally.
The subpoena came as House Republicans continue their investigation into whether Willis had been using federal funds in her probe of Trump.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.